Some men give up their designs when they have almost reached the goal; While others, on the contrary, obtain a victory by exerting, at the last moment, more vigorous efforts than ever before. - Herodotus
Ok, so I'm reading Herodotus's The Histories right now. It's a massive undertaking and I'm only about half way through.
It's the first ever written history, produced painstakingly on about 300 feet of parchment in the 5th century B.C. There's some question whether Herodotus actually saw everything he reported, or whether he trusted a little too often in the stories of others. His accuracy more often than not is held under close scrutiny. So silly. He wrote about his time. Unless later scholars were actually there, I'm prone to have more faith in Herodotus!
Herodotus was a man who knew what he wanted to do and saw it through till the end.
I aspire to that, though I'm sometimes easily distracted. I have a great deal of respect for men and women who exert great effort and win the war.
Today I was reminded just how much I respect people who have what it takes to follow through.
The Bonanzle marketplace (www.Bonanzle.com) is full of many who try. Online sales is fraught with challenges and is just plain hard work. Some are more successful than others, and I think the reasons have less to do with what they sell than it does with how they approach the process.
I have two friends there who are following well designed paths to success. And they're doing it with humor, humility and great enthusiasm. They're doing it day by day, gaining greater ground, and at the same time exerting great effort to help others, each in their own way. They are what I aspire to be, not because of their success but because of the paths and methods they've chosen to reach that success.
I won't share their personal stories because it's not my place. I'll just say that when Herodotus said "It is better by noble boldness to run the risk of being subject to half of the evils we anticipate than to remain in cowardly listlessness for fear of what might happen" he must have had people like my friends in mind. They are nobly bold and I am a richer person for being able to call them friends.
www.bonanzle.com/LouieTheSeller
www.bonanzle.com/AntiquesRGreat
I actually read this last night and became a little emotional. Thank You, your compliments mean the world to me!
ReplyDeleteI will admit that I've never heard of Herodotus. But If he was an honest man, who thought of others - he is my new role model.
P.S - Off to do some research on "Herodotus"
Thanks Again!
No need for thanks, Louie, but you're welcome all the same!
ReplyDeleteHerodotus was a historian - the first human ever to capture the news of the day on parchment. I don't know about his honesty or his integrity, but his perseverance and hard work gave us a great gift - a personal look into a time long, long ago that would have been mostly lost to us otherwise.
He's the one who coined the phrase "Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stay these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds", which our beloved post office appropriated centuries later!